Mrs J Walsh v HKS Consultancy Group Ltd — 2019

Mrs J Walsh brought a complaint of unlawful deductions from pay in relation to the period after she underwent surgery on 27 February 2019. The respondent defended the claim on the basis that she had been dismissed on 26 February 2019, but the tribunal found on the balance of probabilities that there had been no dismissal at the end of February and that her employment continued until it terminated by agreement on 19 April 2019.

The tribunal preferred the claimant's account and text messages over the respondent's hearsay evidence from Mrs Bano. It noted that there was no direct evidence from 'Cameron' about the alleged dismissal, that the two dismissal letters raised difficulties, and that the claimant's March and April texts were consistent with leave and an expected return to work rather than an earlier dismissal. The tribunal also regarded the timing of the P45, issued on 25 April 2019 with a leaving date of 26 February 2019, as consistent with employment having continued beyond February.

On remedy, the tribunal accepted the claimant's figures without challenge. It found that her gross annual salary was £17,000, equivalent to £326.92 per week or £65.38 per working day. It awarded £849.94 for 13 days of holiday that had been agreed with Cameron, and £1,634.50 for 25 working days from 18 March 2019 to 19 April 2019 when she was willing to return to work but was asked to stay at home, making a total award of £2,484.44 gross.